During our International Women’s Day event, Commissioner Krissy Barrett delivered the Helen Williams Oration, reflecting on what it means to Balance the Scales in public life and public sector leadership.

Commissioner Barrett opened by acknowledging the video message from Deputy Commissioner Lesa Gale and then shared a defining example of how equity can be made real in practice. She reflected on returning from maternity leave and wanting to remain operational and described how then Superintendent Gale offered a trial arrangement that had not been done before in ACT Policing: a part time frontline patrol sergeant role shaped around the realities of a new family. Commissioner Barrett described the moment as “progressive kindness”, and as a practical intervention that helped shape her career.

Commissioner Barrett spoke about the competing demands that can shape women’s careers, particularly when professional opportunity intersects with significant personal responsibility. Her address gave voice to the often-unseen effort behind achievement and to the uneven weight women are still required to carry.

In the context of this year’s International Women’s Day theme, Balancing the Scales, the oration invited reflection not only on women’s success, but on the conditions in which success is pursued. It was a powerful contribution to the broader conversation about equity, leadership, and what it will take to create workplaces that better reflect the realities of women’s lives.

 Key takeaways

• Balancing the scales cannot rest on women working harder within unequal systems.
  Progress requires workplaces and leadership pathways that recognise and respond to the realities women navigate.

• For many women, care and career are not separate chapters.
  Opportunity and responsibility are often carried at the same time.

• Equity is practical.
  Real change often looks like reshaping roles, flexibility and pathways so opportunity fits real life.

• Small interventions can change a career trajectory.
  Timely support and practical flexibility can keep talent in the work and open pathways to leadership.

• Success often comes with hidden loads.
  Visible achievement can sit alongside unseen emotional, practical and personal effort.

• Lived experience strengthens leadership.
  Care, responsibility, uncertainty and perseverance can deepen judgment, empathy and authenticity in public service.

• Representation matters, but it is not the finish line.
  Progress must show up in decisions, priorities and outcomes, not only in numbers.

• Balancing the scales includes safety and justice.
  Equity also means systems that prevent harm, protect the vulnerable and hold perpetrators to account.

• Justice should be shaped by women, not only advocated for by women.
  Fairness and accountability are strengthened when women help determine justice and its outcomes.

You can read the entire speech here.

Content note: The full speech includes sensitive topics that may be distressing for some readers.

Thank you to our premier event sponsor.